The Supreme Court issued its detailed verdict in the Baldia factory case, setting aside the convictions of Abdul Rehman alias Bhola and Muhammad Zubair alias Charya.
The court said the prosecution failed to prove its allegations in the case linked to the Baldia Town factory fire, which claimed 264 lives.
The 39-page judgment said an alternative narrative that emerged 2.5 years after the incident was unreliable.
The court noted that statements recorded long after the fire could not support a conviction. It added that a confession before the court lacked independent corroboration.
The bench said forensic evidence did not prove the use of chemical accelerants in the fire.
It also noted that none of the 34 prosecution witnesses recorded an incriminating statement against the accused.
The verdict said the prosecution failed to produce CCTV footage of the fire. The court found that the omission weakened the case.
Read: Baldia Factory Fire: SHC Upholds Death Sentences of Rehman Bhola and Zubair Chariy
The Supreme Court said criminal convictions cannot rest on speculation or general allegations. It reaffirmed that the benefit of the doubt remains a fundamental legal right of an accused person.
The court annulled the earlier judgments of the Anti-Terrorism Court and the Sindh High Court.
The bench said applications seeking the removal of adverse remarks against the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan became ineffective after it declared the lower courts’ decisions void.
Justice Malik Shahzad Ahmad authored the detailed judgment. Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi and Justice Shakeel Ahmad agreed with the ruling.
